Exit 23

South

Part of the county's expressway system, Central Expwy connects Santa Clara to Palo Alto as it runs right thorugh the heart of Silicon Valley.

Exit 22B

South

This is the first of two El Camino Real exits. This one is marked as Hwy 82 North/Grant Road but the road the ramp takes you to is actually Hwy 237 west which turns into Grant Road at El Camino.

Exit 22A

South

Southbound El Camino Real/Hwy 82 runs through the cities of Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and San Jose.

Exit 20

South

Fremont Avenue passes through the residential neighborhoods of Los Altos and Sunnyvale.

A gravel truck with its loader up smacked this sign so badly that it was taken down and a new sign is on order. I will follow with an update when the new sign is installed.

Exit 19B

South

Homestead Road borders the cities of Cupertino and Sunnyvale and runs east all the way to Santa Clara University.

Exit 19A

South

Interstate 280 is a mostly rural freeway that connects San Jose and San Francisco via the coast range. It can be a good alternative to the more congested U.S. 101.

Exit 18

South

Stevens Creek Blvd is the main east-west road through Cupertino. Hwy 85 used to end here until 1994 when the new 18-mile extension to south San Jose was opened to traffic. De Anza College is located just east of the freeway.

Exit 16

South

De Anza Blvd is the main north-south road through Cupertino. The sign originally read "Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road" but was changed when San Jose joined Cupertino in naming it De Anza Blvd.

Exit 14

South

Saratoga Avenue is the only freeway exit serving the community of Saratoga. Saratoga fought very hard to keep Hwy 85 from being built because residents feared falling property values and "quality of life" issues.

Exit 11B

South

Winchester Blvd provides direct access to downtown Los Gatos and Campbell. This road used to be Hwy 17 before the freeway was built.

Exit 11A

South

Highway 17 connects Silicon Valley to the coastal city of Santa Cruz. A few miles south of Hwy 85, Hwy 17 becomes a curvy mountain highway. North 17 turns into Interstate 880 at the Interstate 280 interchange.

Exit 10

South

Los Gatos Blvd heads south from the freeway into eastern Los Gatos which is home to a number of car dealerships. Bascom Avenue is a major north-south road through central San Jose, Campbell and Santa Clara.

Exit 9

South

Union Avenue provides freeway access to the residential areas of the Blossom Valley area in south San Jose.

Exit 8

South

Camden Avenue connects the residential areas of the Almaden Valley with west-central San Jose and Campbell.

Exit 6

South

Part of the county's expressway system, Almaden Expwy provides commuters a fast route into downtown San Jose. It used to be the primary route until Hwy 87/Guadalupe Pkwy was built. Almaden Expwy is still a good alternative to the often congested Hwy 87.

Exit 5B

South

Highway 87/Guadalupe Pkwy is the freeway connection between south San Jose and the downtown area including the HP Pavilion and the Mineta San Jose Intl Airport.

Exit 5A

South

Santa Teresa Blvd is another major route to the residential areas of south San Jose and the Coyote Valley. Santa Teresa heads south to Morgan Hill and Gilroy. It also serves as the primary exit to reach an expanded Oakridge Mall.

Exit 4

South

Blossom Hill Road is a major east-west road in south San Jose. It connects Los Gatos to the south and east San Jose areas.

Exit 2

South

Cottle Road used to make up the western edge of the IBM campus located in south San Jose. A massive residential and commercial development is being constructed on the property.

Exit 1C

South

A large number of business parks are located on Great Oaks Blvd south of the freeway. There is currently no developments north of the freeway.

Exit 1B

South

Because there is no direct-connector to U.S. 101 north, Bernal Road serves that purpose.

Exit 1A

South

This is the southern terminus of Hwy 85 as all through lanes merge onto U.S. 101 south headed towards Gilroy and Los Angeles.

Carpool-to-carpool ramps were added to improve traffic flow through this interchange by eliminating carpools from having to dive across 4 lanes of traffic to reach exits or other carpool lanes. Outside of commute hours, this special ramp is open to all motorists.